Internet of Things
Engage in the Future of IoT
Want to have a voice in the future of IoT? Then why not join us November 28-30 at the third International IoT Forum in Bled Lake, Slovenia? You can register here.
A little background:
The IoT International Forum was established last year in Berlin. At that time, more than 100 IoT enthusiasts from industry and academia participated in the event, taking part in presentations and discussions. A follow up forum was held in Venice at this year’s IoT week. Ericsson’s Jan Höller wrote about this very hot week in June. The third IoT Forum event will take place in a bit cooler, but equally beautiful location – Bled Lake in Slovenia (November 28-30, 2012). This area is well worth visiting for its own sake; the IoT Forum and the satellite IoT/smart living events are just an added bonus. ;)
Bled Lake, Slovenia
The International IoT Forum is a European initiative supported by the IoT-i Project. IoT technology is diverse and is addressed in various technology communities. Similarly, applications of IoT are numerous, spanning many domains of everyday life – transport, energy, health care, environment are just a few examples. Each application area has its own challenges, requirements and peculiarities and is impacted by IoT solutions in different manners (from simple improvements to more profound changes in the way certain things are done or businesses run).
To support coordinated development of an IoT ecosystem and a holistic view of the impacts IoT can have on the society, the aim of the IoT Forum is to gather people (experts and users) with different backgrounds and expertise, interested in various aspects of IoT and to serve as a platform for discussion, exchange of ideas and driving initiatives of common interest for the IoT community.
Consequently, the IoT Forum is organized into 4 working groups (WG):
- Society,
- Economy,
- Technology and
- Legislation and Governance.
IoT Forum Working Groups
Here’s a run down about what each group entails:
Societal Working Group -- For those who care :)
This is a forum that exchanges ideas about the trends, challenges and barriers relating to societal matters within the Internet of Things.
The Societal WG aims to understand concerns, societal barriers and trends from the various members and associated groups and use this as an input to the other Working Groups. They do this by sharing viewpoints between global societal experts, interest groups and stakeholders at an early stage in the evolution of IoT.
This group aims to identify IoT applications of strategic value to society from different sectors, including health, energy, transport, culture, environment, manufacturing, agriculture, etc., to identify societal trends that provide opportunities or impose barriers from the perspective of different application sector players, public authorities and the general public, to identify the ethical implications of IoT and understand the impact on society at large.
Economics Working Group -- For entrepreneurs and money people
The purpose of this forum is to analyze economic and business aspects relating to the development and implementation of the Internet of Things. It focuses on the identification and study of the economic context and implications in order to foster the successful, fast, yet sustainable incorporation of IoT technologies into the real world.
Some of the planned activities include market sizing, categorization of different applications and services according to their business viability and/or profitability, identification and analysis of the market enablers that will drive commercial acceptance.
Technology Working Group -- For the geeks and gurus of IoT technology
This is a forum for the exchange of ideas on various IoT technology matters, opportunities, challenges and solutions emerging from the research community (soon to be ready for exploitation or new disruptive and gap approaches).
The Technology WG aims to influence and harmonize future technical IoT activities, encourage the emergence of transversal – rather than vertical silo-based – solutions for IoT and identify impediments, whether research or technology implied, regulatory, standards, economic, societal, etc. to global technical solutions. This is done through discussions between global IoT technology experts and stakeholders at an early stage in the evolution of IoT architectures and technology solutions.
Legislation and Governance Working Group -- For policy makers
This forum focuses on discussions, brainstorming and analysis of and about the legislative and governance aspects of the Internet of Things.
By sharing viewpoints between global legislation/governance experts, stakeholders, and policy makers at an early stage in the evolution of IoT, the Legislation and Governance WG aims to understand constraints upon the development and deployment of IoT. This also helps to assist policy makers in identifying appropriate legal and governance regimes to enable beneficial and responsible roll out of the IoT.
Common agreement on terminology and concepts is necessary. A sound understanding of the Internet of Things itself by all stakeholders cannot be assumed and requires common discussions. This Working Group will address these challenges in a concerted, well-focused and effective manner to guarantee success.
Interested?
The Forum is open to anyone interested in IoT. It is a place where you can:
- learn about new developments and initiatives,
- contribute towards global IoT acceptance,
- position your company and products in the community,
- influence strategic directions,
- network with peer IoT enthusiasts, and
- explore various funding opportunities.
You can become an active member of the Forum by subscribing to one or more mailing lists. Information is available on the IoT Forum web site.
Hope to see you there!
-- Srdjan Krco, Ericsson Research, Technology WG Chair
